Testimonials

Creative Writing

"This opportunity re-energized my commitment to writing. It was a wonderful experience."

"At every workshop I learned something that helped my writing now and will help me avoid some mistakes in the future."

"Individual attention from the staff and their willingness to invest extra time in the students is really extraordinary."

"The instructors did a tremendous job of creating an environment where we felt safe and confortable sharing our work."

"The small groups were very effective in showing the subtle (and not so subtle) differences in genres and how to explore each one."

English

"Switching my major to English was a sea-change in my life. Always open to me and to my needs, the department makes students the priority. The department lives and breathes textual studies, of literature, of film, of everything. Studying English didn't just give me a way to think about reading, it gave me the tools to read life." -- Elizabeth Bishop '08, doctoral student, Emory University

"It's rare to find a professor that seems genuinely excited about teaching; rarer still to find one that is able to excite the students to learn. What then, are the odds that a student would be fortunate enough to have more than one such professor? Overwhelmingly good if that student's a Creative Writing major at SUNY Oswego." -- Shawn Lucas ‘06, video game developer

"When I think about my time at Oswego, it's the people I met there that I value the most. The friends and mentors I had as a student at Oswego are still my closest personal and professional relationships. My daily life is continually enriched by my time as a student at SUNY Oswego." -- Jay Garrett '96, screenwriter, Los Angeles

"English professors were the most singular on campus, marked by their abiding optimism and unabashed joy for what they taught. It was contagious; and I am still filled with both whenever I open a new book or write a new sentence." -- Matthew Hoffman ‘02, teaches AP English in a northern Virginia high school

"Without the encouragement from the professors of the English and Creative Writing Department at SUNY Oswego, I would have never realized my dream to be a writer. Now that I am a poet and teacher, I understand just how dedicated and hardworking an instructor needs to be in order to teach the craft of writing. I feel very lucky to have had such talented professors." -- Christina Matthews ‘05, full-time English Instructor at Fort Valley State University

"Whenever I think of Oswego, I immediately envision the professors. Always driven by an immediate and genuine passion for their subject, they drew me into academic niches and genres I never before saw myself entering. I owe it to them, especially the Creative Writing and English gurus, for my newly opened mind, my ambition, my decision to pursue what I love. I wouldn't be in Michigan, chasing after an MFA, if it weren't for their unbridled dedication and energy." -- Emily Engelhard ‘09, Teaching Fellow, MFA program at Northern Michigan University

"The education and support that I received during my studies in the English Department at SUNY Oswego greatly shaped the trajectory of my research as a scholar of critical theory, literature and visual culture. The interdisciplinary nature of the program exposed me to a wide variety of methods that continue to inform my projects. It was a privilege to work with and learn from the department's outstanding faculty." -- Julia Friday ‘01, PhD comparative literature, Binghamton University; English instructor, SUNY New Paltz

"The faculty, staff, and students of the English Department at Oswego taught me the importance of reading carefully and writing thoughtfully, never forgetting that both activities are rooted in a responsibility for the communities in which I work and live." -- Jack N. Morales BA '03, MA ‘05, professor of English, Community College of Allegheny County, Pittsburgh, PA

"The English Department's challenging and intellectually rewarding faculty and courses laid the groundwork for my continued interest in literary studies. Without their encouragement, help, guidance, and inspiration, I would not have made it this far." -- Joshua L. Brazee '04, doctoral student, University of Wisconsin

"Oswego's English Department was an important part of my success after college. The faculty are some of the most knowledgeable, personable, and deserving in the field. Their guidance, humorous and thoughtful lectures, and generosity taught me life -long lessons that classical and contemporary literature can't." -- Jason Smelski '05, English teacher, Plato Academy Charter School, Clearwater, FL